The California State Bar/The Model Problem

(Mother Black Widow & Babies)

The State Bar of California is touted as being the model and mother for other bars across the country, and there lies the problem in its “Motherly Model” form.

 

baby_spidersAttorneyBusters.com likes a better analogy such as “Mother Black Widow and Babies”.

Once you strip away the pretentious titles used to describe the various self elected positions, Office of Chief Trial Counsel, Board of Governors, etc., it is just a club with forced membership and dues.

The State of California by law, requires all attorneys practicing law in the state to be members of the California State Bar.

The State Bar of California, then in return for the favor of forced membership and dues, is required to act as the “administrative arm” of the California Supreme Court.

And what is supposed to be the chief purpose of administration? To administrate a Self Disciplinary program of its member attorneys.

fox-guarding-the-chicken-coopBetter defined as, “Foxes Guarding the Chicken Coop”.

What this has led to in its “Model” form is a smoke screen to frustrate individuals that have a problem with an attorney, and to keep attorneys out of harm’s way from the general public.

A general public that has many valid reasons to be ticked off at them.

The State Bar of California has important sounding titles for their fellow attorney members that discipline each other.

They call themselves judges (not judges elected by the public), and governors (not elected by the public), and court committees (not the public court), and appointees to the court (not the public court, but their own internal court).

For the purpose of discussion, lets call the State Bar of California, “The Club”.

“The Club” has proud names for “member only services” that are used to help discipline themselves, such as, “The Ethics Hotline”.

On the surface, this sounds fine and noble, however, once the fog lifts, you realize a more accurate title would be, “Ethics, I Don’t Think I Have Any, Can You Tell Me What They Are?” or “Ethics, Not Lately, I Think I’m In Trouble”.

But, the titles would be too long and they wouldn’t sound as good.

Plus, some of us of lesser intelligence that need protection from ourselves (according to the attorneys) might actually catch on to their secret “members only” code names.

Let’s look at the Ethics Hotline. This is a toll free number “FOR ATTORNEYS ONLY” that an attorney can call to see if either something they did, or plan to do, could get them a warning letter from “The Club”.

The “Ethics Hotline” is courteous as to provide for attorneys that do not wish to use their own names, the ability to use “pseudonyms” (an “alias” for us simple folk). The “Ethics Hotline” will even arrange a call back appointment (for the attorneys to call back) when they don’t want to leave their number.

This is not a joke!!

The Club” is working to provide their members the first level of defense when they are pursued by a client. “The Club” will tell the attorney what things they can cite to deter “The Club” from “getting” them if they do have a complaint filed against them.

The Club” (State Bar if you have forgotten) of course says this is how its members are better disciplined by knowing what ethics are.

However, Attorney Busters.com believes that if an attorney hasn’t figured out what ethics are by the time they take their state bar exam, they simply don’t want to know.

There are several CD’s available concerning what you should look for in an attorney and what to do if you’ve got a problem with one.

In order to post a complaint about a bad experience you or a friend has had with a bar association go to the Cobweb.